SAN JUAN PARADISE FOR BLOCKCHAIN START UPS

Over the 800 companies have opened during last two years in the area of San Juan, the capital of Puerto Rico. Circumstances in this country were best described by Jeff Thompson, the president and CEO of Red Cat, a drone storage and analytics software business that uses blockchain technology. “This is one of the best places to put a start-up company. The tax incentives are incredible for a start-up. The talent down here is incredible. Some of the most prominent names in blockchain are here. It’s a really exciting time here in Puerto Rico.”

Department of Economic Development and Commerce of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico will be forming an advisory council to promote Blockchain use for businesses in the country. Department secretary Manuel Laboy, announced the creation of the council during the Blockchain Unbound conference that took place in San Juan.

The Blockchain advisory council will be made up of members of both the private and public sector. The council will allegedly act “unofficially as a kind of filter” to determine with projects will help solve legitimate needs on the island with Blockchain, as opposed to companies that just mention Blockchain because of the tax exemptions.

The committee is a logical next step, if we consider the fact that Puerto Rico has determined number of tax concessions in order to attract foreign companies to move their headquarters to the island, mostly from the continental part of the USA.

This committee will produce legal framework for the Blockchain industry to continue its growth. However, there are still some obstacles that some crypto entrepreneurs are facing on the island. For example, local banks have taken a cautious approach to opening bank accounts for individuals that have a business related to the cryptocurrency industry.